White Room

About the White Room

The White Room provides current information relating to new technologies for energy efficiency. Stay connected with the latest news, events, and scientific breakthroughs in this fast moving sector. Use our filters on the left or click here to send a suggestion for content to add.

Boeing subsidiary Spectrolab's solar panels supply power to over 60% of orbiting satellites, but the company may soon be known for another achievement: their new "terrestrial" solar cells beat the old record for solar conversion efficiency by 15%.

A group of researchers at MIT have devised an experimental thermoelectric device that converts solar heat directly into power via the Seebeck effect with greater efficiency than similar experimental devices.

The price of solar panels are dropping, so many companies are turning their attention to reducing installation costs. Two leading solar companies, Solon Energy and Trina Solar, released new solar panel designs that they claim will reduce installation time by more than half.

The start-up SoloPower recently opened a manufacturing facility, which raised concerns from media and solar observers. SoloPower is entering into the niche market of thin-film panels using CIGS-based panels. The same niche and technology of Solyndra, a solar company that went bankrupt last year.

Designers and researchers have come up with see-through solar panels that can be used as windows in buildings, white solar panels that can blend in with building facades or vertical wind turbines that blend into the scenery like these beautiful turbine trees created by New Wind.